After our group had a simple discussion, we finally decided that Lili, Shen Feng, Xu Shu, and I would go downstairs first to try talking with the security guards.
If that didn't work, we'd go straight to find Suo Tian and the others.
Everyone else would stay home for now—after all, if a whole crowd of us went out together, people who didn't know the situation might think we were going out for a group fight.
But just as we were about to leave, Xiao Hu and Tingyun saw us and insisted on coming along.
Uncle Gazi tried to bluff them at first, saying we were going to catch goldfish for them, but it didn't work at all.
When kids want to cling to you, their persistence is truly exhausting.
After a long while of coaxing and scaring them without any success—in fact, only making them cry harder—we were out of options.
Seeing this, Uncle Gazi felt sorry for them and suggested we just bring the kids along.
So in the end, Shen Feng and I each carried one child and, feeling completely helpless, headed downstairs.
After waking up, Xiao Hu no longer recognized me as one of his own, instead clinging to Shen Feng.
Even with tear streaks still on his face, he could grin from ear to ear in Shen Feng's arms.
We entered the elevator.
A few middle-aged women got on during the ride and gave us all a strange look, then nodded politely with gentle smiles as a greeting.
Soon we arrived on the first floor.
We walked to the security office, knocked on the door, and called to the two guards eating breakfast inside:
"Excuse me…"
One of them slurped the noodle hanging from his mouth, stood up, and asked, "What's up?"
"Sorry to bother you so early," Shen Feng said politely.
"We wanted to ask if it's possible to change to another place to live. Our current unit isn't very suitable."
"Huh? Change place?" The guard's voice was rough, completely unlike the friendly guard who took me upstairs yesterday.
"You want to change just because you say so? You think this is your own home or what?"
Xu Shu frowned slightly. "We're here to discuss it properly. Could you please check if there's an empty unit somewhere? We can move ourselves—we won't trouble you with anything else."
"That's easy for you to say," the guard said unhappily.
"Every unit is arranged based on registration data. You think moving rooms is easy, but we'd have to work half the night shuffling paperwork! Didn't you just move in yesterday? And now you're already asking to switch rooms? What's wrong with the place? Haunted or something?"
"It's not that. Just… personal reasons. Please help us if possible," Lili said softly.
The guard gave her a look—probably thinking she was a weak woman—and his expression softened a little, but he still waved his hand.
"No, no. Personal reasons make it even more impossible. There are so many households in this building—who doesn't have personal reasons? If everyone came asking for a room change, wouldn't it be chaos?"
"Can't you at least check for us…?" Xu Shu kept trying to persuade him.
The guard waved impatiently. "Just go, go. There's no way you're getting a new room. What's been assigned is what you get. You people all came from outside—you know what kind of times these are. Having a place to live at all is good enough. Be content. Stop making so many demands."
Shen Feng looked like he still wanted to say something, but I pulled him away.
I dragged them into the lobby.
Xu Shu, still upset, muttered angrily:
"Bullying the weak with borrowed power!"
"Alright, alright, we haven't really done anything for them since we're not family, so it's understandable they're reluctant to help. Let's first think about what we can do now," I said, trying to reassure everyone.
"For now, we can only go talk to Suo Tian. He has more influence than we do—a single word from him might work better than us discussing this for half an hour," Shen Feng said.
Lili nodded in agreement.
"Then let's not waste time and go to Suo Tian's place," I said.
"Wait a moment. Chen Yang, do you even know where Suo Tian lives?" Xu Shu interrupted.
At her question, I suddenly remembered that yesterday during the checkup, we had split from Suo Tian.
Other than knowing his place was far from ours, we didn't know anything else.
"Hey you guys I'm here to drop by again,"
Just as the four of us were frowning over not knowing Suo Tian's address, a voice suddenly came from the lobby door.
Perking up, all four of us immediately turned to look.
Perhaps our gazes were too intense—Bruno, who had been smiling as he walked toward us, suddenly froze, his face stiffened.
After a long pause, he said, "Y-your gaze… feels a little… unusual."
"Heheh," I laughed in a teasing tone, stepped forward, looped my arm around his neck in a buddy-buddy gesture, and asked, "Got a question for you."
Bruno awkwardly moved his neck and asked, "W-what kind of question?"
Glancing at Shen Feng and the others, I pressed down lightly on Bruno's shoulder and asked, "Do you know where Suo Tian lives?"
"Of course," Bruno replied, looking at me. "Are you planning to move there?"
"No, no, it's just a small matter—we need his help with something. Could you take us there?"
Bruno looked us over with a puzzled expression, seeming like he wanted to ask something but didn't, and finally hesitantly nodded, "Okay…"
With Bruno as our guide, we finally breathed a sigh of relief.
He had come by car, and though it was cramped, we managed to squeeze in.
As we set off, Bruno muttered, "This overload is ridiculous."
No one paid him any mind.
He grumbled to himself for a while and then stopped.
Soon, we started making funny faces at Tingyun and Xiao Hu, who were sitting on my lap.
Seeing their shocked expressions, I suddenly thought of Mr. Bean…
The car soon reached the street from yesterday, still bustling with people.
In the busiest areas, there were even traffic lights and police directing the crowd.
Tingyun and Xiao Hu were young.
Even though they'd been in crowded environments before, they had mostly forgotten it.
Now, seeing all the people outside, they pressed against the glass and shouted in delight.
At a red light, I noticed a few young men staggering out of a bar on the corner—boys, really, all around twenty-something.
I asked Bruno in surprise, "This bar is open during the day?"
He glanced at the drunken youths and said, "Yeah, the bar's open in the daytime. After ten at night, the entire city goes dark."
"Oh," I nodded in understanding.
Watching the bustling crowd, I couldn't help but click my tongue in amazement.
"Do these people buy things with money? Dollars or RMB?"
Bruno chuckled. "That paper money is worthless now. People here periodically have the right to collect certain goods for free. The amount and quantity are regulated."
"So you can't just buy whatever you want?"
"Supporting so many people, resources can't be that abundant."
"Do we have the right to collect things for free too? Like clothes or snacks?" Lili asked.
"Of course," Bruno said, turning slightly toward her. "Completely allowed."
"Ha, that's great! Chen Yang, we should come here to browse when we have time," Lili said happily.
"We can walk around here when we come back later," I suggested.
…
The car drove for a full half-hour before we finally glimpsed a large residential area ahead.
Unlike our area, besides a few high-rise buildings, this place was filled with standalone villas, each occupying a wide lot—it was breathtaking.
Before entering the community, our car was stopped.
Several armed men came over, checked the car inside and out, asked for our identities, and only then let us through.
"With the world like this, you're still using manpower and resources to build a villa area?" Xu Shu asked.
Bruno waved his hand. "NONONO, it's not like that. Apart from the outer walls, some essential personnel, and necessary weapons and buildings, everything else already exists in the city. Headquarters wouldn't waste time on this."
The car drove along the scenic roads of the villa district.
Along the way, we occasionally saw children playing by the roadside, heavily pregnant women, or elderly couples leaning on canes.
According to Bruno, these people were all family members of core personnel at headquarters.
To live in this villa district, you had to be at least a member of the core forces.
Researchers like him could only stay in the peripheral high-rise buildings.
I joked, "So there are ranks even here?"
Bruno's expression turned serious. "Those who contribute to headquarters naturally receive better treatment for themselves and their families. Those who merely rely on headquarters to survive and avoid the dangers of combat—just being allowed to live here is already very generous."
I shrugged, not having much to say.
After turning a corner, the car stopped in front of a villa.
"We're here. Suo Tian lives here."
We got out of the car and looked at the villa, complete with its own private garden.
I couldn't help but think how indulgent Suo Tian's life seemed.
Just as Bruno was about to ring the doorbell, the door opened from inside.
Suo Tian himself appeared, dressed in a crisp black uniform.
Behind him were Big beard, the middle-aged man, and the two black-clad guards who had escorted me and Lili back last time.
It looked like they were about to go out.
Suo Tian's eyes scanned us, and he pursed his lips, asking, "What's the matter?"
"We… wanted to discuss something with you." I felt a little awkward in the current situation.
Suo Tian looked at me for a moment, then opened the villa door slightly and said, "Come in and wait. I'll probably be back this afternoon."
Without waiting for us to respond, he and big beard, the middle-aged man, and the others quickly stepped out, got into the car parked in front, and sped away.
We stood there at the door for a while, looking at each other, before finally stepping inside.
— The end of the Chapter–